It's A Family Thing
by Kiara Lupin
Summary: Kakashi has been demoted forcefully by the Hokage. Along with his new rank comes a new mission. What does that have to do with saving his precious Icha Icha? Not KakaNaru. Its a family fic.
1. Chapter 1

Hey people! This is my frist attempt at a chapter fiction so enjoy!

In this story Kakashi is 17

and Naruto is 3

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Hatake Kakashi, also known as The Amazing Copy-Nin of Konoha was a man who has never failed a mission before. A ninja who has faced every single enemy imaginable and survived, a ninja who would has undoubtedly been called a hero by many. However now Kakashi found himself, faced with a mission he was almost certain he would never complete. Running as fast as he could he still could not manage to close the gap between his enemy and himself. His eyes widened momentarily as he saw his opponent stop in the middle of a bridge and lean over the edge with the important document in hand. A new burst of energy ran through him as he doubled his speed in an attempt to reach the document before it fell into the fast flowing rapids of the river below. However it was too late and a hand released the document in its grip and the manuscript fell almost in slow-motion towards the river. Gritting his teeth and pushing his body to the max Kakashi chanced his course with the agility only known to one of the most elite Anbu squad. He reached the bridge but instead of rushing towards the enemy he launched himself after the priceless document. The fall seemed to last forever as Kakashi desperately tried to reach for the manuscript before it hit the water. A sigh of relief escaped his lips as he felt his fingers close around the book; however it was cut short as the sudden shock of freezing cold water hit him as he broke the surface of the water head first.

After a moment of disorientation due to the sudden change of temperature Kakashi struggled back to the surface of the water, his lungs burning from lack of air. When he finally broke the surface he took a large gulp of air before he began coughing and choking in an effort to get water out of his lungs. As he did so he heard childish laughter from above him, glaring upward at his victorious opponent. The young blond whiskered child grinned down at him still giggling. Kakashi groaned in irritation as he looked at down at himself, dripping wet from his dip, standing chest deep in the slightly muddy water of the river. Kakashi, who was also known as a man who never showed his emotions, almost cried when he glanced at the book he held in his hand, his precious Icha-Icha Paradise was soaked and the once white pages muddy, Kakashi actually had to bite his lip as one of the pages slowly fell out, the words smudged and unreadable from the soak in the water.

To understand how our dear Hatake Kakashi found himself in this predicament we must go back in time to early in the day, in the Hokage's office. Sitting in his high back leather chair behind a table pilled sky high with paperwork, the Hokage himself gave a long suffering sigh as he glanced at the never ending amount of documents which required his signature and approval. He was actually debating a very evil plan which involved a highly deadly fire jutsu, incinerating the army of offending pieces of paper before him. However as he was just in the middle of the series of hand seals there was a large puff of smoke and an Anbu with a mask delicately painted to depict a snarling wolf, appeared in the middle of the room.

"Hokage-sama, I would advise against that course of action, Yuki-san would take great offence to the sudden disappearance of paperwork and the giant scorch mark that would be left on your desk."

Bashfully the Hokage lowered his hands, silently cursing the arrival of Anbu, Wolf, and wishing that he had made up his mind sooner and done the jutsu faster. Heaving a great sigh, the Hokage buried his face in his hands and mumbled something so quiet the Anbu only managed to catch what suspiciously sounded like a whine of, "But it's so boring!" Clearing his throat slightly the Anbu stood at attention.

"You summoned me, Hokage-sama."

"Ah yes," the Hokage said straightening up in his chair looking directly at the stiff figure in front of him. "Take off your mask and take a seat will you. This is not a formal meeting therefore you need not act so."

The Anbu complied, taking a seat in front of the Hokage. Reaching up he removed his porcelain mask to reveal a masked face, with only his two eyes visible and a stock of wildly styled hair which lent to one side. His eyes, however, were the most shocking aspect of his rather handsome face for his right eye was a normal looking shade of dark grey where as his left eye was bright red with three black comma shapes encircling his black pupil, with a scar running from his forehead down below his mask right through his eye.

"Hokage-sama what is your reason for summoning me?"

"Must you be so formal Kakashi?"

"Hokage-sama it is improper for me to address you in any other way."

"That never stopped you with Minato."

Almost immediately the whole room went silent, and the Hokage couldn't help but feel like he had stepped on a land mine. Namikaze Minato, former fourth Hokage of Konoha who had been lost in the war against the nine tailed demon fox, Kyuubi, three years ago, and Kakashi's deceased sensei, the one person who had acted like a father to Kakashi after the untimely suicide of his father, the White Fang of Konoha. For the past three years even mentioning the name of the late Hokage was enough to put Kakashi into such a state of depression that he would go as far as not eating for several days. Looking at the young man before him, he noticed that Kakashi's shoulders had slumped noticeably, making him look younger then he originally was. Once again Sarutobi was reminded of how young the man, no boy, in front of him was.

Mentally he cursed the way of the shinobi which took away the life and innocence of young children in order to turn them into killing machines, tools that weren't allowed to show any emotion, but in reality they were merely children, put through unbearable horrors that even an adult should not undergo. Kakashi was an example of one of these children, Jounin at the age of six, Anbu at the age of nine. Now at seventeen the boy in front of him had seen so much death and lived through so many horrors, it amazed him that he still managed to retain his humanity. Sighing deeply, the Hokage cleared his throat.

"Kakashi I heard you successfully completed your last mission."

"Yes, Hokage-sama."

There was a noticeable droop in his voice compared to earlier, and Sarutobi couldn't help but curse his careless mouth.

"I also heard that you sustained quite a few injuries from the mission."

"Yes, Hokage-sama, however it is not too serious, only a few minor wounds. I'll be able to take up a mission by tomorrow."

"Hmm…I'm afraid I don't classify a blast of chakra right through your chest to be a minor wound, Kakashi-san"

"…"

"Kakashi-san, how long have you been with the Anbu squad?"

"Eight years yesterday, Hokage-sama."

"Have you ever thought of retiring?"

"What!"

Kakashi's head snapped up so fast that it audibly cracked from the fast and harsh movement.

"You know very well that you heard me, Kakashi. You know there is a reason the recommended time period for active duty for an Anbu is at max 4 years, working in Anbu risks your mental stability as well as your life. However you have been Anbu for double the recommended time."

"But…"

"No buts, Kakashi. This is not an offer, it is an order."

"You can't order me to retire!"

"Yes I can, and I will! I am hereby demoting you to Jounin."

"You can't do that!"

"Yes I can! In fact I have already prepared a mission for you."

"…"

Kakashi was speechless. This couldn't be happening! He had worked so hard to get to this position and now the old man was asking him to abandon it, throw it all away, his sacrifices and hard training, his friends' and sensei's sacrifices.

"You know Minato would have done the same thing I did had he have survived."

The third Hokage's voice cut through the silence and Kakashi visibly tensed at the mention of the name, and he choked out,

"How would you know, you didn't know anything about him!"

"A know a lot more about him that you think Kakashi, I even know things about him that you never knew, and I for one am certain that he would not have wanted you moping around like this after his death. He would have wanted you to actually live your life to the fullest and enjoy it. I am very sure that is the real reason he sacrificed his life. He would be very disappointed with you if he could see you now."

Sarutobi knew his words had struck home when he heard Kakashi's breath catch in his throat.

"Fine…I accept. What is the mission?"

"I will tell you but what I am about to say is a SSS rank secret and is not to leave this room, nor is it to be told to anyone else except for the two of us."

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:) I hope you guys like how its going pls review


	2. Chapter 2

Hi back again! I hoped you like the last chapter. Lol while I'm at this i would like to draw your attention to xbabylolitax who is my co writer and inspiration, might I add if it wasn't for her you would be reading a fic with very confusing spelling mistakes so be thankful towards her and go read her fics as well. lol

enjoy!!.

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"I will tell you but what I am about to say is a SSS rank secret and is not to leave this room, nor is it to be told to anyone else except for the two of us

"I will tell you but what I am about to say is a SSS rank secret and is not to leave this room, nor is it to be told to anyone else except for the two of us."

Kakashi nodded silently, giving the third Hokage his full attention. An SSS rank secret was not something to be taken lightly and was punishable by death should it be told to anyone else.

"Very well, I am quite sure you were aware of the kunoichi form the former Land of Whirlpool, who was staying with us for the past few years."

"Yes, Uzumaki Kushina was her name. She used to train with us and Sensei from time to time."

"Well I am also quite sure you know of the reasons behind her death."

"Yes, she died during childbirth on the night of the Kyuubi attack due to the lack of medical personnel in the hospital. Her son, Uzumaki Naruto was used as the host for the Kyuubi."

"Well yes, that was what everyone was told. However there were a few parts that were kept secret by request of Kushina and her partner."

"I take it you are going to tell me that secret today."

"Yes, at that period of time Kushina was actually having secret relations with a shinobi of this village rather than a regular citizen of this village. However, due to the fact that the council frowned upon her staying here, she and her partner decided to keep it a secret."

"Who was her partner?"

"I'm actually surprised that you haven't guessed. Uzumaki Naruto is actually the son of Namikaze Minato and Uzumaki Kushina."

"Sensei had a son… and he sealed that demon in him…why?"

"This was one of the reasons why Minato wanted the village to see Naruto as a hero. However, his whishes were never followed through. Being the son of an outsider as well as housing the Kyuubi, has made the villagers reject him and despise him to the point where there has already been several assassination attempts on him."

"Why don't you tell them the truth, about him being Naruto's father?"

"And with what proof to back it up? We have no documented evidence because they wanted to keep the secret from being found out by anyone. Minato had too much faith in the villagers to follow his last wish that he overlooked the fact that every person, no matter how nice, houses a monster inside of them that can never be controlled."

The room lapsed back into silence as Kakashi struggled to take in the new information. He had seen the boy in the streets and had never actually done anything bad to him, but he never actually made an effort to stop the villagers from abusing the boy either, he merely turned a blind eye to both the villagers' actions and the boy's suffering. Kakashi knew that, had he known the boy had been his deceased sensei's son, he would have protected the boy at any cost, making him feel even worse. He couldn't believe that he valued the child's life based on who he was and not whether he was being judged unfairly or not. At a loss for words, all Kakashi could do was clench his hands and grit his teeth. The silence however was soon broken once again by the Hokage.

"The reason I am telling you this information is because it relates directly to Naruto and your mission."

Kakashi snapped his head up with at the mention of the boy's name.

"Last week there was another assassination attempt on Naruto. However, this time the guards I assigned him were 'unable' to arrive on time and he was severely beaten and his apartment was set on fire."

The emphasis on the word 'unable' seemed to have a hidden meaning which was translated by Kakashi as the guards lending a hand in the deed. It seemed the Hokage shared the same views as his next words would have sent Kakashi toppling out of his chair had he not have been an Anbu.

"I am assigning you the mission of caring for Naruto."

"What?!"

"I believe you heard me well enough, Kakashi, but incase you are failing in your hearing, I am assigning you the mission of caring for Naruto."

"I heard you well enough, why are you assigning him to me? I can hardly take care of myself, as the staff at the hospital always remind me, let alone caring for a child, a three year old child at that."

"I chose you because I want someone to care for the boy with eyes unclouded by hate and make sure the boy gets the proper protection and upbringing he should. Your close relationship with his father is another reason, and personally I think the both of you will be a good influence on one another."

"Yeah I'm quite sure the boy needs to learn how to be a cold blooded killer and work-a-holic and I need to learn how to be a kid that can't even care for himself."

"Naruto needs a role model in his life, a father figure you could say, and as for how Naruto would influence you; well I'll leave that for you to find out."

"…"

"So do you accept the mission?"

"Yes, I guess. I kinda owe it to him, don't I?" Kakashi asked, looking out the window at the profile of the fourth Hokage carved onto the face of the cliff through the window.

Sarutobi didn't respond; instead, he pressed a button located on his desk which connected to a speaker.

"Yuki-chan, can you bring him in now?"

"Yes, Hokage-sama," came the crackling reply of the Hokage's secretary over the speaker.

The door opened and a young woman came in escorting a young child with azure blue eyes and blond, sun kissed hair. On his rounded childlike cheeks were six whiskers like scars, three on each cheek. He was wearing a white shirt with the odd design of a red swirl on its front as well as bright orange shorts. His arms were wrapped in bandages and his clothes looked like they were taken out of a week old dumpster, dirty and tattered. However in spite of his battered appearance the boy still wore a wide smile on his face, which made his eyes close into thin slits. The moment he spotted the third Hokage however the boy immediately ran towards him shouting in a childish voice,

"Ji-chan, Ji-chan, what did you call me here for! I didn't do anything bad so does this mean that I'm getting something special?"

Climbing up onto the Hokage's lap, the boy settled himself with the task of trying to get the Hokage's hat of his head. Chuckling, the Hokage caught the boy's hands gently in his own and lowered them while nudging Naruto gently to turn around to look as Kakashi.

"I guess you could say that Naruto. Now, this is Hatake Kakashi."

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Ooooh! I wonder what and how Naruto is gonna react to Kakashi, well stay tuned for the next chapter!

Don't forget to review!!


	3. Chapter 3

Hello Everyone, well first of I would like to thank all you guys for your comments and favourites and also apologize for how long it has been since i have uploaded a chapter. I have had my Yr 11 exams and an currently trying to cope with being a new Yr 12 and all the new work and responsibilities that come with it. ( -_-")

Now I am not abandoning the story nor am I forgetting about this story, I am determined to finish it so please no worries there. Well here is the next chapter and sorry if there are any mistakes please let me know because this chapter hasn't been fully read and checked.

For now please kick back and enjoy as I continue the plot. :D

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"I guess you could say that Naruto. Now, this is Hatake Kakashi."

Kakashi unconsciously held his breath as wide innocent azure eyes turned and focused on him. Now that he actually had a good look at the boy he noticed the great similarity between him and his father. Their spiky unruly hair that rivaled the run in brightness, their azure blue eyes, their nose, even their mouth. However the rest of him was his mother, Kakashi could tell. The shape of Naruto's eyes was exactly like his mothers, a rounded almond shape. His facial structure wasn't as sharp as his father's but there was most definitely a rounded curve-like shape from his mother. Kakashi hadn't known Kushina that well, but he was willing to bet his life on the fact that Naruto inherited most of her outgoing loud personality.

"Ka…ka…shi."

Naruto mumbled trying out the name, rolling it on his tongue as he tried to get used to the new syllables. It was obvious he liked the name because he started saying the name nonstop while bouncing on the Hokage's lap in sync. The Hokage chuckled again before stilling the child.

"Yes Naruto. Now, Kakashi here is going to take care of you from now on."

At the Hokage's words, Naruto stilled completely, looking more closely at Kakashi. Kakashi detected a slight flash of fear in his eyes as he watched Naruto snuggle closer to the Hokage. Looking at the Hokage, he saw the old man was nodding in his direction as if telling him to do something. Heaving a great sigh, Kakashi heaved himself out of the chair and walked over towards the boy. He knelt next to the Hokage's chair so that he was eye level with the small boy. He held up his right hand and curved his mouth slightly under his mask.

"Yo, nice to meet you."

Naruto, unsure of what to do with the odd man before him who was holding up his palm, thought back to all the times he had seen the other villagers greeting each other by shaking hands. However, he was quite sure they never held up their hands like this to shake hands. Maybe it was a special kind of hand shake. Happy with his conclusion, Naruto held up his own hand and reached out to Kakashi so that their palms touched. Kakashi was genuinely surprised at the boy's actions, and his eyes widened slightly with wonder, before he found himself unable to stop himself for chuckling lightly at the boy's antics. The Hokage himself soon joined in, and Naruto, not really understanding why the adults were laughing as well joined in to, his childish laughter clear and light with joy. Kakashi clamed down and observed the child in front of him, thinking to himself, 'This won't be as bad as I thought.'

After straightening out the last few minor details, Kakashi left the Hokage tower with the boy at his heels, carrying a small bag of what little of his belongings he had managed to save from the fire. Eyeing the small bag on the boys shoulders, Kakashi swore the very first thing he was going to do with Naruto was take him shopping.

Kakashi lead them towards the Anbu barracks where he planned to pick up his belongings and leave quietly, however the peaceful trip he had hoped for did not play out as planned. Everything went smoothly as he entered the building, however the moment he entered the hallway he was stopped by one of the captains, Anbu Owl.

"Wolf, I heard of your retirement. It's a pity to lose you, you know?"

"Pfft! Retirement?! More like forced demotion for no reason."

"Well, you have been serving for longer then all the rest of us, not good for you, ya know?…Hey what's he doing here?!"

Looking in the direction Owl was pointing at, he saw that Naruto was now clutching his pant leg tightly trying to hide himself behind his leg. Turning back to Owl, Kakashi replied,

"Oh, Naruto? Well, I'll be taking care of him from now on so I brought him with me to get my stu…"

"Get the f'ing demon out of here! I won't have such filth such as him wandering around here."

By now Naruto was quivering with fear and Kakashi's sharp hearing caught a few muffled sobs from the boy. Enraged at this, Kakashi turned back to face the man who was once his captain, with his sharingan spinning angrily.

"Look I'm getting my stuff and he is coming with me whether you like it or not. I don't care what you do, but I am on direct orders from the Hokage that I am allowed to kill any one I see fit to, if they even upset the child, this does not exclude you!"

With that Kakashi bent down and lifted Naruto into his arms and swept past Owl in a storm of anger. Glancing quickly down at the boy in his arms, Kakashi felt his heart go out for the kid who was fighting to keep his tears back. Silently Kakashi swore under his breath. What had just happened only succeeded in reinforcing the though that, his taking care of Naruto was the best decision he had made in a long time. Cradling the boy gently, he walked into what used to be his room. It was small and dark with no windows, and barely any furniture except a bed and a bedside table with drawers for his clothes. Kakashi gently put Naruto on the bed as he began to empty the drawers of all his possessions into a rucksack which had been hanging on a hook behind the door. Naruto's sniffles were the only thing breaking the thick silence along with the sound of rustling clothes and papers which were being stuffed unmercifully into the bag.

Kakashi stopped his relentless attack upon the drawers and sighed. This was awkward; Kakashi didn't have a clue about how to calm a child down. He had never been faced with a problem like this before. Lifting his head up, he was faced with a picture of his Genin team with his sensei smiling over them. Mentally he asked, 'What would you do at a time like this?' Picking up the picture Kakashi walked over towards the bed and settled himself next to the sniffling child.

"You know, I'm actually really new to this you know? Caring for a child that is."

"…sniffle…"

"So you know, I don't actually know what to do especially at times like this, and sometimes I may make mistakes."

"…"

"But you know I'll be there for you whenever you need me. So don't be afraid to ask me for anything, and don't be afraid to cry, cause I'll always be there for you. Okay?"

Wide tear-filled eyes looked up at him in wonder and Kakashi turned around and meet his gaze with the most sincere eyes he could master. Naruto's eyes filled with more tears and soon Kakashi found himself with a crying boy on his lap gripping his Anbu vest in a death grip. Kakashi hugged Naruto gently for a moment or two and then nudged him to turn around.

"See this photo?"

Naruto stared at the photo which was framed behind slightly dusty glass. Reaching out with a slightly trembling hand Naruto traced out the image of a boy with silver hair and a mask covering half his face. Turning to Kakashi he pointed at the boy.

"Is this you?"

"Yup. That was me and my Genin team, and that man," Kakashi said pointing at his blond sensei, "Was my sensei, a great man. He was the fourth Hokage."

"He was a hero?!" Naruto asked in wonder.

"Yup, one day you to will get in a Genin team and I can guarantee you they will be your best friends, no matter what, and all of you will turn out to be heroes too one day as well."

"Really?"

"Yup."

They stayed like that a little longer, Naruto admiring the simple photo and Kakashi observing him while reminiscing of the long forgotten memories which he had pushed to the back of his mind in an effort to forget, promising himself that he would do anything he could to protect the child in his arms.

When they finally left the barracks with Kakashi carrying his now over stuffed ruck sack, they made their way though the main streets of Konoha, stopping occasionally for Kakashi to get certain things such as food and other supplies. Naruto however couldn't help but realize that they were steadily progressing further into the wealthier sections of Konoha. When they passed the Uchiha compound Naruto couldn't hold back his curiosity any longer. Turning to Kakashi he asked, "Where are we going?"

"Home of course. Where else would we be going?"

"Well where do we live exactly? I didn't think anyone lived here except for the Hyuuga's and the Uchiha's."

Kakashi grinned under his mask.

"A lot of families actually live here, just many of them have major properties else where in the village and use theses areas as holiday homes on occasion. For us however our home is right here. Try to remember the way, incase you get lost ok?"

Naruto looked around in wonder taking in every last detail as if everything would be swept from his sight any minute. Naruto couldn't help but wonder which of these houses could be his. All of them just seemed so perfect that he couldn't believe he would be living in one of these houses. Naruto was so busy taking in his surroundings that he didn't notice that Kakashi had stopped, causing Naruto to walk right into him. Kakashi felt something run into him and later a soft barely audible "ooff". Turning around he saw Naruto wincing slightly as he rubbed his bottom, Kakashi couldn't help the grin which formed under his mask and the soft chuckle which escaped his mouth.

"We're here Naruto."

Naruto looked up at him in questioningly before turning his gaze to the building entrance they had stopped in front. The front gate was made of polished dark oak which was covered with dust and the house itself was huge with its windows hanging askew and some of their hinges and a highly chaotic garden. The grass was uncut and weeds seemed to have taken control of the place growing every where imaginable. The tress looked like they were going to die from lack of care while the bushes seemed to have taken on a mind of their own. On a whole it looked like no one had lived there for ages.

"So what do you think Naruto?"

Naruto slowly scanned the area over with his eyes before saying,

"It looks like a dump."

Kakashi promptly sweat dropped.

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I hoped you like this chapter. Chapter 4 is on its way dont worry.

Please review THX.


	4. Chapter 4

Hi everyone, First of I would like to apologise for the massive time gap between my post. I graduated from high school and moved from Sydney to Melbourne. I was doing Fashion Design but stopped after the first year it just wasn't me, that was last year, this year I am now in my first year of Animation at Qantm College. I have also formed a Cosplay group, MAXIN International, and as such have also been very busy making costumes and planing skits. A lot have changed in my life an i have been busy, but I would like to thank hoigui, who sent me an email late last year. While I didn't receive the email till recently it called to my attention. I haven't posted anything on my account for a long time, and I actually had 2 chapters written up and just never posted them, so not I give them to all of you wonderful readers. Thank you for your supports and comments, and for reading my story, please enjoy. XD

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Kakashi promptly sweat dropped.

Unfortunately for Kakashi and Naruto the interior of the house was in far worse condition then its exterior had been in. However it wasn't until Kakashi's foot crashed trough one of the wooden steps did they finally come to the conclusion that the house was uninhabitable for the time being and set of to find a temporary room for the night… or a week or so. It was on this track to find shelter did Kakashi unwittingly take out his priceless document, Icha Icha Paradise.

"Kakashi?"

"Hnn?"

"What's that?"

"A book."

"Why does it have a big red cross on the back?"

"Ahh…That's cause only certain people can read it."

"Really what type pf people? Can I read it?"

"No Naruto It's only for adults."

"….."

"Naruto?"

"So its one of those perverted books, Hokage-ojiichan has?"

"Not so sure about the perverted part but yes the Hokage does have some of these books."

'I should know', thought Kakashi, 'I stole my first one of him.' Naruto however didn't seem impressed; instead he had a deep pouting frown on his face and had stopped walking to glare at Kakashi. Kakashi turned around I little worried about his charges behavior.

"What's wrong Naruto?"

"…"

"Naruto?"

"Those books are bad."

"Huh?"

"Those are perverted books, Kakashi you shouldn't read them."

"These… their not perverted, their…" Kakashi said trying to find an excuse.

"…"

"…"

"Pervert!"

Naruto shouted as he ran past Kakashi, grabbing the book from his loose grasp, running of full throttle. It took Kakashi a minute to register what happened before his eyes widened in horror.

"O…Oi ... Naruto. Get BACK HERE WITH MY BOOK!"

…Time skip forward…

And that's the story to how Hatake Kakashi, also known as The Amazing Copy-Nin of Konoha found himself soaked to the bone with his 'precious' destroyed looking up loathingly at the young boy who had caused all his sorrow. Heaving a huge sigh Kakashi muttered to himself, "What have I gotten myself into?"

A few hours later…

Kakashi lay on his futon staring blankly at the wooden ceiling above him. He was lucky and managed to get a cheap room at a local inn in town, though it was quite far away from the inner town, it was livable until he could get his family house fixed up properly. He had not expected his house to fall into that much decay over the years he had left it. It just served to him a reminder of how long it had been since he moved out of the place to forget his father. Closing his eyes tightly he willed the painful memories away and focused on his surroundings.

The room they were given wasn't too small nor too big. There was enough room for two futon to be laid out when the table had been put away and there was a connecting bathroom. The walls were painted a pale green, blank with nothing hanging off them. The window showed a view of a park nearby and a few restaurants and shops around the area. Kakashi sighed absentmindedly and rolled over onto his side so he was now facing the bathroom door, where from within he could here the shower running and Naruto humming to himself. Kakashi closed his eyes taught fully. Never would he have taught his sensei, Minato sensei, having a son out of wedlock and behind the backs of almost everyone in the village. And never in a million years would Kakashi have taught that he, the ever unapproachable Copy-Nin of Konaha would be responsible for the kid.

The sound of the shower turning of and the door sliding open alerted him of Naruto's approach, not a minute to late as Naruto decided to make a running dive at him from the bathroom doorway. Kakashi barely had time to roll away before a blur of yellow and orange landed just where his stomach had been minutes before.

"Kashi it's your turn!"

"Kashi?" Kakashi asked, his one visible eye closing in amusement.

"Yup! Kakashi is just to long so you'll be Kashi from now on!"

Kakashi allowed himself a smile chuckle at Naruto's expression. The kid looked as if he had made the biggest discovery of the centaury.

"You know kid your pretty cute." Naruto beamed proudly.

"But I still haven't forgiven you for my book so you can stop trying to get out of your punishment. Your going to bed EARLY!" Kakashi said while walking away, leaving a pouting Naruto sitting arms folded and cross legged on his futon.

The rest of the night was rather uneventful except for Naruto's numerous attempts to get out of going to bed early. However finally, after a lot of pleading, whining, and even screaming, Kakashi managed to settle the boy down with the promise of ramen for lunch the next morning. Kakashi himself found himself retrieving to bed earlier then usual out of exhaustion more then anything else. However as peaceful as his day may have seemed, Kakashi's dreams were the exact opposite.

The village was burning around him. People were screaming and crying. Explosions occasionally went off around him; some so strong they rocked the earth and caused his legs to buckle slightly as they were already straining to keep him up-right. Even still Kakashi pushed onwards. He had to protect Rin. He promised him, he promised Obito. Suddenly an explosion went of right in front of him. The heat from the flames scalding his body and the flying debris cutting his skin threatened to cause him to fly backwards but he managed to remain standing. An ear splitting roar resounded around the valley, drowning out all other sounds of battle. Looking over in the direction it came from, Kakashi could make out the undeniable shape of the Kyuubi looming over the once beautiful city of Konoha. Its nine tails wiped around wildly and its evil eyes glowed red with anger. Throwing its head back, it gave another dreadful howl before bringing one of its tails down hard onto the earth. Trees crumpled and burnt to ashes within a second and a powerful shockwave blasted trough the distance heading towards one of the valley walls.

Running with new found vigor, Kakashi headed towards a portion of the forest which had bee untouched opposite the newly destroyed area. There he found several teams of ninja still standing ready for a retaliation attack. "We gotta hold this thing of until the fourth arrives!" He heard one of the leaders urging on his team. Not many of the ninja's were in fighting condition. Many were already injured and some were barely alive. This mission was pointless, and not only Kakashi knew it. They were nothing but decoys, a distraction until their leader could arrive to destroy the monster fox. Scanning the area Kakashi soon found who he was looking for. Rin. With her light brown hair clotted with blood and a strained look on her face as she tried her hardest to save a dying female Nin. The blue glow from her hands hovering over the women's side, which had a massive chunk missing, was trembling with strain. However the women's breath soon grew weaker and weaker till there was none at all. Rin choked out a weak sob before looking up at him.

They stared at each other, only seconds passed but to the both of them it felt like an eternity, understanding and comfort and unspoken words passed at a rapid pace. However before either knew what was happening, another large explosion shook the earth. Trees and large chunks of earth were blown up from their rooted positions. Kakashi shielded and closed his eyes with his hands for a brief moment and when he opened them he saw hell. Staring at him with lifeless eyes, blood dripping from her wounds, impaled trough her stomach by a jagged piece of wood. Rin.

Eyes snapping open, practically leaping out of bed Kakashi awoke, mouth open in a silent scream of horror. It took seconds for him to regain his bearings and minutes for him to realize he was breathing heavily. It took him a full half an hour to fully calm himself, and when he did he looked to his side to see Naruto still sleeping peacefully, undisturbed by Kakashi's movements. 'Must not have moved or made much noise this time." He taught to himself while admiring the peaceful look on his charge's face. The moonlight had streamed trough the window, lighting the room up in a surreal blue glow. Kakashi lay back down all the while, his eye's not leaving the boy who slumbered beside him. Another life had been entrusted to him. 'What if I fail again? What if another person I promised to protect dies?' Laying there still as a statue, with his thoughts running wild Kakashi couldn't stop his memories from floating pass his eyes. His fathers body in a pool of blood, Obito's smile as he lay crushed by a stone, Rin's last smile at him before the explosion. The scene of his sensei's body as it merely crumpled, life lost to the jutsu he used. Kakashi fisted the sheets beneath him.

"No. Not another one. No one else will die under my care."

The promise was unheard as the one person the promise was made to still slumbered unawares of the emotional pain which plagued the man, but it was still strong, one of the unbreakable chains which will tie the both of them together in their odd familial relationship.

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Thank you, please review XD


	5. Chapter 5

Here's the next chapter. This one was a little hard to write and slightly depressing, but I'm trying to establish a deeper connection between Kakashi and Naruto so this was kinda of necessary. Please look forward to the next chapter where Naruto is more like his usual cheeky self. Thank you for bearing with me XD

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The promise was unheard as the one person the promise was made to still slumbered unawares of the emotional pain which plagued the man, but it was still strong, one of the unbreakable chains which will tie the both of them together in their odd familial relationship.

About a month has passed since Naruto and Kakashi had checked into the Inn, and miraculously within that month, the workers and builders whom Kakashi had hired had managed to restore the Hatake family house into a better, more livable condition. The garden however was another question. Wanting to save a bit of cash, Kakashi has come to the conclusion that they would tame the garden themselves. Though it seemed like a good idea at the time, Kakashi was currently, ankle deep in the dirt, sweaty and irritated, regretting his decision to do so. However much he tried, for some reason the plants seemed to hate and rebel against his attempts to prune, trim, or weed them. Kakashi wasn't sure how much more he could take, and he hadn't even gotten around to planting yet. He was so irritated he didn't notice Naruto walk out of the house holding a glass of cold water until he was right behind him.

Naruto watched intently as his guardian attempted to hack of a particularly thick branch of one of the bushes with a kunai, and couldn't help but sweat drop. He tapped Kakashi on the back to gain his attention. Turning around, Kakashi found the glass of water nearly shoved into his mouth.

"Here. I think you should rest. You've been working for ages!."

"Thanks Naruto," Kakashi said putting down the now empty glass, "But I gotta keep working or I'll never get this done."

"Can I help you."

"I don't think that's a very good idea Naruto, you might..."

"No Kashi I'm good with plants."

"But Naruto their not the same as pot plants these are much bigger, and tougher." Kakashi illustrated that by delivering another vicious hack to the poor branch."

Naruto winched in sympathy. "You don't know how to take care of plants, do you?"

That last comment made Kakashi stop in mid hack and freeze. Naruto grinned in triumph knowing that he had hit a nerve. Kakashi sighed and turned to look at Naruto, "What gave me away?"

"You're using a kunai, not a branch clipper."

"There are branch clippers?" Kakashi asked stupidly causing Naruto to laugh even more, his innocent laughter, ringing trough the garden making Kakashi smile despite his embarrassment.

Needless to say that meant they were going shopping. Kakashi allowed the excited ball of orange to drag him trough the streets, to a shop he apparently frequented a lot. However it didn't escape his attention that as they passed through the streets, the angry and accusatory glares of the villagers followed them, while most were aimed at Naruto, quite a fair few looks of disgust were aimed at him as well. As if they couldn't believe that he was even walking next to the brat. Glares weren't the only thing that followed them trough the streets though, whispers and talk of monsters found their way to Kakashi's sensitive ears and no doubt to Naruto's as well. Kakashi tried his best to ignore the anger that was slowly building in his chest as not to upset Naruto, but the boy managed to sense his discomfort anyway. Without turning around Naruto continued to pull him in the direction of the shop, "Don't worry. This happens a lot. Just ignore them."

Though he sounded as cheerful as ever there was a hollow quality to the way he spoke. But Kakashi was worried, no child deserved that kind of treatment, hell he wouldn't even wish it on most of his enemies.

Naruto however was ignorant to the thoughts of his caretaker, and pushed open the door, the bell-ringing trough the store as he did. It was a flower store, the whole shop floor filled from wall to wall with buckets of many different breeds of flowers. The store looked empty however, as if there was no one minding it. Kakashi turned to Naruto with an uncertain look on his face, "Are you sure this is the right place Naruto?"

Naruto looked up at him with wide eyes, "Yeah, I come here all the time. Hold on."

Naruto then proceeded to walk up towards the counter, he looked around for a moment before finding a stool, hidden behind a bucket of tiger lilies. He pulled it out and set it next to the counter, before climbing on so he could look over it. He stretched out his chubby arm, and pulled a bell towards himself. Kakashi looked on curiously as Naruto proceeded to tap out a simple rhythm on the bell. The sound reverberated trough out the empty store. After a few minutes, Kakashi walked up behind Naruto and said, "Naruto I really don't think there's anyone here, lets come back later ok?"

"No Kashi. Wait a minute ok."

"But there is no on…."

Before Kakashi could finish his sentence there was the sound of hurried footsteps on the stairs behind the store. A few seconds later the boor opened, but Kakashi didn't see anyone. Slightly perplexed he, was about to activate his Sharingan, to see if there was a Genjutsu used, however there was a scrape of a chair before a small blond head peaked out from behind the counter. Naruto grinned so wide, Kakashi was sure his face was going to split in two.

"Hi Ino!" Naruto called out cheerfully.

"Hi Naru!" Replied the young girl with a similarly large grin. She had short shoulder length blond hair and large blue eyes.

"Is it ok for me to get some stuff today?"

"Yeah. My parents wont be back for ages. What do you need this time? The usual?"

"Nah, the basics." Naruto chirped, while rubbing the back of his head.

"What? You bought some last month!" Ino said surprised.

"Oh it's not for me. It's for my friend."

Naruto then turned back to Kakashi. Kakashi found himself slightly nervous, as wide blue eyes, narrowed in on him and seemed to go over him with a fine-toothed comb. Vaguely Kakashi, in the back of his head, Kakahsi marveled at how this young girl managed to make him, him, the infamous copy-nin, cringe slightly in dread. She would make a very good ninja, should she choose to that was for sure. His thoughts were, however broken sharply, by her voice.

"Who are you?" Kakashi would never admit it but he was extremely relived when Naruto intervened before he could answer.

"He's Kakashi, but you can call him Kashi. I live with him now."

"Really? Is he nice to you Naru?"

"Yeah he is. Don't worry Ino, he's Ooji-san's friend."

Ino then turned to Kakashi again and said, "You'd better be nice to Naru. I'll make you pay if you're not! Cause I'm gonna be a great ninja some day." At that last sentence Kakashi couldn't help the grin that spread across his face. He walked up towards the counter and reached over placing his hand on her head.

"Hn, You'll a little short at the moment," Ino's face darkened with annoyance, but before she could say anything in indignation, Kakashi continued, "But you're right. I think you will be a good ninja in the future. Don't you worry, I'll take good care of Naruto."

Ino seemed to think about whether to continue snapping at him for the short comment, or to be content with the praise, and support. After a while she choose the latter, and with a little huff, she got off her stool and walked around the counter before looking up at the older man.

"That's good." With that she turned back to Naruto who was getting of the stool. "What exactly do you need?"

"Urr, Branch clippers, fertilizer, 3 shovels, shears, and some potting mix?" Naruto listed of on his fingers, with a truthful expression on his face.

Ino nodded before disappearing to the back of the store once again. From the front of the store Kakashi and Naruto could hear things being moved around. Kakashi looked back at Naruto for a moment. Kakashi was pleasantly surprised that there were at least some people that were nice to the boy. Over the last month, He had brought Naruto to many stores, for groceries, clothes, toys, and beginner training weapons. Each and every store he had gone to people would turn cold, and unhelpful when they saw the child who accompanied him. Some of the storeowner's even when as far as to try and sell them, rotten food or faulty products. Of course Kakashi soon caught on to this and put a stop to it. What had scared him was Naruto's accepting attitude to it all.

**Flash back**

Kakashi and Naruto were walking down the main shopping street, they hand only just moved back into the repaired Hatake house, and they needed some basic foodstuffs to start out at least. Kakashi could not get used to the glares and whispers that followed them through out the walk, but what he found worst were the mutters of pity from the villagers aimed at him, " For having to take care of the demon child." It made him sick to the stomach to think of what it took for the young boy next to him to walk with a high head and a large fake smile on his face, despite the looks directed at him. Kakashi having had enough of this looked around for a minute before smiling. Gently he put a hand on Naruto's shoulder to stop him. Big blue azure eyes stared back at him questioningly for a minute, but that soon turned to surprise when Naruto felt himself being lifted up high above his, caretakers head. Naruto started to panic for a moment, but Kakashi quickly stopped him from that as he deposited the little blond boy onto this shoulders. Reaching up again he took, Naruto's small hands and guided them so that the small boy took hold of his hair, before letting go and holding on to Naruto's legs to make sure the boy didn't fall off.

"Hey Naruto don't mind them ok? Tell you what lets go get you a treat ok. You like candy?"

"Candy? Can I really have some?"

"Yeah, when we get to the grocery store pick out any kind you want ok?"

Kakashi couldn't help but chuckle as he felt Naruto let go with one hand and punch the air with a loud, "Yatta!" With that he set of once more to his destination. Now Naruto didn't know this but one of the reasons, Kakashi had given him a shoulder ride was so that he wouldn't notice the death glares he was shooting everyone else. This tactic worked surprisingly well as his glare managed to silence the mummers and cause many of the villagers to avert their eyes. While he was no longer an ANBU, Kakashi's reputation was still well known. As the son of the White Fang of Konoha, he demanded a lot of respect, and fear. A fact Kakashi was not afraid to abuse when needed, and this was one of those times. He soon reached the grocery store and walked in, quickly picking up a basket next to the entrance and walking down the fresh fruit and vegetable isle. Naruto made a disgusted noise from on top his shoulders as he picked up broccoli, lettuce, apples, oranges and pears. Kakashi rolled his eyes in good humor and continued to pick up the basics like milk, eggs, meat and fish. Finally he reached the last stop, the candy isle.

Putting down the nearly full basket, he then set Naruto on his own two feet. "You can pick 3 types of candy, but you can't eat it all at once ok?" Naruto nodded excitedly and began to look carefully at the candy on the, brow frowned in taught as he began to single out 3 of the best candies. Kakashi could not help but marvel at the patients and taught that went into the choices. He had been in the store himself before, and seen the kids Naruto's age throwing a tantrum trying to get more candy from their parents, and said parents just giving in. But not Naruto he handled it in a calm fashion. He was startled from his thoughts when said boy tugged on his pants legs. He had a giant grin slapped on his face has he showed his choices proudly to Kakashi. A packed of gummies in the shapes of brightly colored kunai and shurinken, little chocolate ninja and marshmallow scrolls. Kakashi chuckled and added them to the basket before proceeding to the check out.

When he got to the check out the lady working at the register smiled at him, however her expression quickly changed when she noticed the small child sticking close to his legs. As he handed her the basket, he kept a very close eye on her. Naruto seem to get rather nervous and tried to hide. Kakashi marveled at how the girls attitude suddenly changed when se realized Naruto would be eating these food items as well. The vegetables and fruit were put at the bottom of the bags so that they would be squashed and bruised, the eggs were dumped so roughly, Kakashi was sure that they would be broken, meat and fish packages were torn with finger nails so that they would eventually fall from the packaging, and the sweet, so carefully chosen by Naruto were totally ignored. Kakashi while totally outrages decided to play along. The very fact she was doing this in front of him, showed that Naruto's other guards had just let this happen. He kept up the act, and handed her the money. Naruto who was behind him stiffened, Kakashi could tell he wanted to say something but instead he just let his shoulders slump and looked sad. Kakashi felt a little guilty about this, but he had to find out how far this went. The girl shortchanged him, and just nodded towards the bags saying, "You should ask for a different mission next time, or just say you're busy."

"And you should learn how to treat your customers better." Kakashi replied coldly. He slammed the change on the table and leaned over the counter in a rage. "I want my money back, and replacements for all the ruined goods, as well as the candy that was in that basket."

"B…But." The girl stuttered.

"Or is this how you treat all people who are buying groceries. If your not going to treat us right I want to talk to your boss right now, or do you not know who I am?"

"I'm sorry, sir, I jus tought…"

"I don't care what you think, just do your job properly, or you might find that next time any of us are required to save your life, we might not."

"I'm sorry sir, please wait here I'll get everything for you." The girl stuttered before running off.

Once she was out of sight, Kakashi knelt down to looks at Naruto. "Hey next time if anyone dose that to you, you just tell me ok. They shouldn't be in the first place." Naruto just stared at him with wide eyes, and nodded dumbly. The girl soon returned with everything they had chosen in the beginning but in double the amounts. She then proceeded to pull out the full amount of money Kakashi had handed her and said, "I'm so sorry here have all of these on the house." Kakashi nodded curtly and guided Naruto out of the store. Outside, Kakashi reached into the bag and handed Naruto his chocolate ninja. Kneeling down so he could look at the boy, as he helped him undo the wrapper he told him. "You should not let anyone treat you like that, you have every right to complain you know?"

"Its ok Kashi, I'm used to it." Kakashi felt the rage in him rise again, but he battled it down.

"You shouldn't be Naruto, you have every right to be treated like everyone else. Now promise me that if anyone dose that to you again, you will tell me ok?"

"Ok."

**End of Flashback**

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I hope you all enjoyed this, please leave some reviews and comments thank you.


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